Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (12/83)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

and entrusted to him the governorship of Syria, to which he dispatched deputies to act on his behalf. Numerous anecdotes are told of his generosity, charm, and literary grace. When al-Mutawakkil entered Damascus, al-Fath rode beside him on a jammazah (1). Accounts of him were related by al-Mubarrad and by Aḥmad ibn Yazīd the tutor.

He was exceptionally sharp-witted. On one occasion the caliph al-Muʿtaṣim visited the amir Khāqān and, jesting with this son of his while the boy was still young, said, “O Fath, which is finer—my house or yours?” Al-Fath replied, “Our house, whenever you are in it.” The caliph thereupon bestowed on him one hundred thousand (2).

Al-Fath enjoyed a wide mastery of the various branches of belles-lettres, and he was killed together with al-Mutawakkil in 247 AH (3).

25 – al-Faḍl ibn Marwān, the Grand Vizier*

He transmitted hadith from ʿAlī ibn ʿĀṣim, and among those who narrated from him were al-Mubarrad, Sulaymān ibn Wahb the secretary, and others. His kunya was Abū al-ʿAbbās; he hailed from Baradān, and the turns of fate eventually carried him to the vizierate under al-Muʿtaṣim. He was counted among the eloquent. Al-Muʿtaṣim was lavish in his giving, though at times he would suspend it—

(1) That is, he was riding a “naqa jamaza,” a she-camel known for its speed. The verb *jamz* denotes a rapid gait, faster than *anaq* (a light trot) but slower than *hadr* (full gallop). A camel that moves at this brisk pace is called *jamaz*. The report is cited in Muʿjam al-udabaʾ, vol. 16, p. 175. (2) Muʿjam al-udabaʾ, vol. 16, p. 175. (3) See the account of the murder of al-Mutawakkil and al-Fath on p. 42 of the present volume. (*) Al-Tabari, Taʾrikh, vol. 9; Ibn al-Athir, al-Kamil, vol. 7; Ibn Khallikan, Wafayat al-aʿyan, 4:45, 47; Ibn Taghri Birdi, al-Nujum al-zahara, 2:332; Shadharat al-dhahab, 2:122.

فَبَعَثَ إِلَيْهَا نُوَّاباً عَنْهُ. وَلَهُ أَخْبَارٌ فِي الكَرَمِ وَالظَّرْفِ وَالأَدَبِ. وَلَمَّا قَدِمَ المُتَوَكِّلُ إِلَى دِمَشْقَ، كَانَ الفَتْحُ زَمِيْلَهُ عَلَى جَمَّازَةٍ (١) . حَكَى عَنْهُ: المُبَرِّدُ، وَأَحْمَدُ بنُ يَزِيْدَ المُؤَدِّبُ. وَكَانَ أَحَدَ الأَذكِيَاءِ، دَخَلَ المُعْتَصِمُ عَلَى الأَمِيْرِ خَاقَانَ، فَمَازَحَ ابْنَهُ هَذَا، وَهُوَ صَبِيٌّ، فَقَالَ: يَا فَتْحُ، أَيُّمَا أَحْسَنُ: دَارِي أَوْ دَارُكُم؟ فَقَالَ الفَتْحُ: دَارُنَا إِذَا كُنْتَ فِيْهَا. فَوَهَبَهُ مائَةَ أَلْفٍ (٢) . وَكَانَ الفَتْحُ ذَا بَاعٍ أَطْوَلَ فِي فُنُوْنِ الأَدَبِ. قُتِلَ مَعَ المُتَوَكِّلِ سَنَةَ سَبْعٍ وَأَرْبَعِيْنَ (٣) . ٢٥ - الفَضْلُ بنُ مَرْوَانَ الوَزِيْرُ الكَبِيْرُ * حَدَّثَ عَنْ: عَلِيِّ بنِ عَاصِمٍ. رَوَى عَنْهُ: المُبَرِّدُ، وَسُلَيْمَانُ بنُ وَهْبٍ الكَاتِبُ، وَغَيْرُهُمَا. يُكْنَى أَبَا العَبَّاسِ، أَصْلُهُ مِنَ البَرَدَانِ، وَتَنَقَّلَتْ بِهِ الأَحْوَالُ إِلَى وِزَارَةِ المُعْتَصِمِ، وَكَانَ مِنَ البُلَغَاءِ. وَكَانَ المُعْتَصِمُ كَثِيْرَ البَذْلِ، فَرُبَّمَا عَطَّلَ مِنْهُ

(١) أي: على ناقة جمازة، وهي السريعة. والجمز: نوع من العدو سريع، دون الحضر وفوق العنق. ويقال للبعير الذي يسرع: جماز. والخبر في " معجم الأدباء " ١٦ / ١٧٥. (٢) " معجم الأدباء " ١٦ / ١٧٥. (٣) راجع مقتل المتوكل والفتح في الصفحة: ٤٢ من هذا الجزء. (*) تاريخ الطبري: الجزء التاسع، الكامل لابن الأثير: الجزء السابع، وفيات الأعيان ٤ / ٤٥، ٤٧، النجوم الزاهرة ٢ / ٣٣٢، شذرات الذهب ٢ / ١٢٢.